Home > Computers & Internet > PC Cases > DYNAPOWER TITAN-C07.M3.15A1 MICRO ATX W/200W SFX POWER SUPPLY 1x5.25 2x3.5 1x3.5(hidden) W/ FRONT I/... ATX Case
DYNAPOWER TITAN-C07.M3.15A1 MICRO ATX W/200W SFX POWER SUPPLY 1x5.25 2x3.5 1x3.5(hidden) W/ FRONT I/... ATX Case
rgathright's Full Review: DYNAPOWER TITAN-C07.M3.15A1 MICRO ATX W/200W SFX P...
I purchased this computer case hoping it would provide a good foundation for a low cost computer. The very low price for a MICRO-ATX case and power supply was just to tempting. I quickly found that the case was not intended for the mid-performance level of computing I desired.
Case:
The case can fit any standard MICRO-ATX motherboard. I decided to mount a Biostar P4M80-M7 motherboard and an Intel Celeron D 331 processor. The case comes with all necessary motherboard installation hardware, such as screws and standoffs. The Biostar motherboard fit like
a champ. The Celeron fit easily into the case as well. I had to weave some knots into the cpu fan cabling to keep it out of harms way though. The paint and front plastic cover match almost perfectly, giving the case a nice overall semi-flat paint look. The case is light weight as well.
Two stands come with the case to keep the case standing if you decide to stand it up like a mid-tower case.
Power:
The power supply is held in place by three screws on the back of the case. The power supply also has a thin gauge 2 inch long tab for support. When I received the case, the power supply was not resting on this tab. Using a pair of pliers the tab was ben upwards to provide some support for the power supply. During normal operation the power supply was hot to the touch (110-115F) in a room with ambient temperature of 67F. I removed the protective grill from the fan intake of the power supply and super glued another fan over top of the intake to provide more airflow. The heat of the power supply dropped quickly.
As with all electronic parts, this amount of heat can destroy the power supply in just a few months worth of use. When combining this power supply with a motherboard and cpu, please consider using a low power consumption cpu. Otherwise you will burn up the power supply and put the room the computer is in at the time at a fire risk. The computer I tested this 200watt power supply on used the internal video card, an external video card will
consume far more power. Upon further examination, the power supply itself is only rated 175watt continuous with a 200watt surge. Finally the power supply has a 20Pin motherboard connector. My motherboard was a 24pin powered motherboard, no problems arose from the unpopulated 4 pins.
Heat:
The four case fan mounts were poorly designed. They obstruct so much airflow that an air draft can be felt on the intake of the fans during operation! In order to make the computer usable and safe, I mounted a single 80MM Modware Subzero Blue fan on the side panel. I wish I could have removed the metal grill for one of the fan mounts on the back of the computer to help eliminate some of the heat that was building up. The problem was that these grills are part of the metal case body itself. I would be invalidating the
hardware warranty.
Drive Bays:
The case features two 3.5" hard drive bays at the top of the case. You have the option of installing two 3.5" peripheral drives instead. Only one fan mount is located on the front of the case, it is at the bottom. The bays are isolated from the main air flow pattern within the case. During testing, the computer was equipped with a single 7200RPM IDE hard drive. The system was left on for 24 hours in a room with a ceiling fan running and an average temperature of 67F. At the end of 24 hours, the case was opened to find the hard drive to hot to
touch. I was running Windows XP without a screensaver. Power saving features were turned off as well. I felt this simulated the typical use of the system because if a user was "downloading movies" all night they would have left the hard drive on as well.
One 5 1/4" drive bay is located in the case as well. A DVD or CD drive is meant for this bay. I installed a combo CD-RW/DVD drive. Four screws can be removed around the perimeter of this bay, allowing for easy removal and installation. I actually liked this feature. The outside case plastic front uses 5 1/4" drive bay eject button. I had a hard time aligning the CD-ROM's eject button to this button.
Summary:
In 2007, the Dynapower Titan-C07.M3.15A1 should be avoided because of poor air circulation, high risk of hardware failure and possible fire hazard. With modern PC's consuming more power and generating so much heat, this case has been sadly left behind. For this reason, I would not recommend the case to anyone, unless they like PopTarts or Hot Pockets! You could remove the expansion slot covers and make a real nice easy bake oven!
Review Notes:
I have a digital thermometer in my computer room with a six hour averaging function. No food products were harmed in the making of this review.
Here are some actual quotes from the shipping box:
ISO-9001 CERTIFICATED DESIGN TO PROTECT TECHNOLOGY Please refor to Mainboard menu for USB Pins location Pins arrangement may vanes in different motherboard
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